Complaint about a broadcast of Berea-Hillbrow Home of Hope, a children’s home where children in need of care and protection are being cared for. In the broadcast, which was intended to make people aware of the plight of the children, the faces of some of the children were shown on television. The Complainant, quoting section 150(1) of the Children’s Act, 2005, complained that by showing the faces of some of the children, they were being put at risk because some of them had been the subjects of human trafficking and had been victims of sexual exploitation. The Broadcaster denied that the children’s identities were disclosed by the broadcast because their names were not mentioned. The Broadcaster also relied on a document called “Consent umbrella release regarding broadcast of minors”. The Tribunal found that the mere showing of faces of some children on television was sufficient identification and that put them at risk. It further found that the consent given by the person acting in loco parentis could not override the provisions of the Children’s Act. The Tribunal found that the Broadcaster did not afford special weight to the privacy of the children and therefore contravened clause 15(3) of the Broadcasting Code. The Broadcaster was reprimanded.
